Alley

or ally, alay, subs. (school).—1.  A superior kind of marble. [Supposed to = ‘alabaster,’ of which they are sometimes made.] Also ALLY TOR (or TAW): cf. STONEY (q.v.), BLOOD-ALLEY, and COMMONEY (q.v.).

  1720.  DEFOE, The Life and Adventures of Mr. Duncan Campbell, iv. A large bag of marbles and ALLOYS.

  1748.  Philosophical Transactions, xlv. 456. Pellets, vulgarly called ALLEYS, which boys play withal.

  1807.  COLERIDGE, Own Times, III. 953. While he was playing at marbles would quarrel with the taws and ALAYS in his mouth, because he had understood it was the way Demosthenes had learned to splutter.

  1833.  PARIS, Philosophy in Sport, x. 171. Why, your taw is a brown marble, and your ALLY, if I remember rightly, a very white one; is it not?

  1837.  DICKENS, Pickwick Papers, 358. Inquiring whether he had won any ALLEY TORS or commoneys lately.

  1865.  CRAIK, Christian’s Mistake, 37. An ALLY TAW, that is, a real alabaster marble.

  1876.  S. L. CLEMENS (‘Mark Twain’), The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, ii. 27. Jim, I’ll give you a marvel. I’ll give you a white ALLEY! … White ALLEY, Jim! And it’s a bully taw.

  2.  (venery).—THE ALLEY = the female pudendum: see MONOSYLLABLE.

  THE ALLEY, subs. phr. (stock exchange).—Change Alley: cf. HOUSE, LANE, STREET, etc.

  1720.  The Bubbler’s Medley, Stock Jobbing Cards, or the Humours of Change ALLEY [Title].

  1775.  ASH, Dictionary, s.v. ALLEY … The place in the city of London where the public funds are bought and sold.

  1819.  T. MOORE, Tom Crib’s Memorial to Congress, 19.